Show Preview: King Krule, Willis Earl Beal

[THUG LYFE] Archy Marshall is a lover, not a fighter. The music he creates under his nom de plume King Krule
is wise beyond its years—gritty, stubborn, stark and impossibly
tuneful. Watching the lanky redhead onstage, wearing a suit two sizes
too big, you get the sense his songs aren’t written as much as unearthed
from under a box of stale hash. King Krule has frequently been compared
to a British Tom Waits or Joe Strummer raised on hip-hop and dubstep,
but on his debut record, 6 Feet Beneath the Moon, he sets course
on his own path, writing classic heartbreakers often filled with only
guitar, scattered percussion and his rugged, thuggish voice. It’s easily
one of the most assured debuts in a long time, especially when you
learn that many of these songs—including the jaw-dropping “Out Getting
Ribs”—were written when the 19-year-old Marshall was just 16. You can
hear bits of contemporary influences (especially on the languid “Neptune
Estate,” which sounds like King Krule covering a Portishead song), but
to my ears it’s more akin to a set of jazz standards reinterpreted as
pop songs by a kid who doesn’t know any better. Believe the hype.
Doug Fir Lounge, 830 E Burnside St., 231-9663. 9 pm Sunday, Dec. 15. $14. 21+.